Why purpose gives brands an identity

Attracting the next generation of employees and consumers is harder than ever. Why? Because mass marketing just doesn’t do it for them.

They’re even rebelling against the Gen Z label the media uses to describe them. So why do young people switch off when brand campaigns are switched on?

These people don’t want to be another field in a data set. They want to be recognised as individuals. They are driven, entrepreneurial, open and, most of all, they have strong values. And they are drawn to brands that know what they stand for.

The bottom line is they expect your brand to have purpose.

ONLY

OF LARGE BUSINESSES USE PURPOSE TO ATTRACT TALENT1

1 Connected Kids Trend Watch 2018, MediaCom.2 Here’s what you need to know about Gen Z, monster.com.3 Are purposeful brands more likely to be commercially successful?,

prmoment.com

15

PEOPLE DON’T BUY WHAT YOU DO; THEY BUY WHY YOU DO IT. AND WHAT YOU DO PROVES WHAT YOU BELIEVE.Simon Sinek

““

74OF GEN Z RANK PURPOSE BEFORE A PAY CHEQUE2

94OF CMOS THINK PURPOSE HAS A HIGH IMPACT ON THEIR BRAND VALUE3

INDIFFERENCE KILLS BRANDS

54OF GEN Z WOULD ACTIVELY

ENGAGE WITH A BRAND THAT COULD HELP THEM

MAKE A DIFFERENCE.4

4 Gen Z value price, quality of product over brand name, Marketing Dive.

AUTHENTICITY BREEDS BELIEF

Young people align themselves with brands they can believe in. But make no mistake – purpose can’t be a marketing ploy.

It must be authentic, inspiring and lived. Its essential purpose is rooted deep in your brand truths. When it is, purpose is an astoundingly powerful tool. It creates real, positive change – for your brand, your people and your audience.

Case 1:

PURPOSE FOR YOUR PEOPLE

Patagonia is perhaps the best-known champion of purpose. The brand has donated millions in Black Friday profits and taxes to charities and environmental causes. Alongside its consumer-facing purpose, Patagonia’s values extend to employees as well. During the last American election, Patagonia closed its stores so employees could vote. The brand pays 100% of bail costs for any employee arrested for non-violent civil disobedience. 95% of ‘moms’ return after maternity leave (compared to the 64% national average) largely thanks to on-site facilities and family-friendly practices. And all employees get 23 three-day weekends a year to spend more time outdoors with their families and friends5.

It all adds up. Patagonia’s employee turnover rates for both retail and corporate headquarters are well below average.

Find out more about employee purpose at: bornandraised.com/purpose

5 Annual Benefit Corporation Report, Patagonia.

Just how important is it for consumers that brands have a purpose? Harvard Business Review found that 64% of consumers who have established a relationship with a brand cite shared values as the main reason for that relationship6.Take the shoe brand TOMS. TOMS has a simple purpose – for every single pair of shoes bought, the company will donate another pair to a child in need. Since 2006, 86 million customers have bought into the brand’s purpose and have enabled the company to give 86 million gifts.

Perhaps the best example of how brand purpose resonates is this line taken from the TOMS website, “What started as a company has become a movement.”

Find out more about consumer purpose at: bornandraised.com/purpose

6 Three myths about what customers want, Harvard Business Review

Case 2:

PURPOSE FOR THE PEOPLE

We can’t talk about purpose without touching on ours.

We believe it’s our responsibility to add value at every step of the process. We’re constantly asking if there’s a better way – a more effective approach, a different idea – to not just meet your expectations but exceed them.

We call it challenging thinking. It stops us and our clients settling for ordinary. It means real change happens. It’s exciting and effective in equal measure. And here’s how it’s helped a few of our clients.

OUR PURPOSE:CHALLENGING THINKING

HOW TO HARNESS PURPOSE

Purpose rules the roost for the next generation of employees and consumers. Great news if your brand has a strong, authentic purpose and communicates it well. Less so if you’re struggling to define or communicate it. Find what you stand forMaybe you’ve heard of the Wolff Olins brand butterfly (looks like a venn diagram to us). It’s a great tool for thinking about purpose. In the first circle write what’s wrong with your world. Write what you offer that’s differentiating in the second circle. The sweet, overlapping middle bit is the hunting ground for purpose.

Stand togetherOnce you’ve bottomed out your purpose and values, you need to let your employees know what you stand for and what’s expected of them. So it’s essential that your employer brand is aligned.

An employer brand rooted in purpose can:

+ Reduce time to hire by 34%

+ Reduce cost of sourcing by 43%

+ Increase referrals by 30%

Take actionArmed with an authentic purpose and employees bought into your values, you’re well-placed to make your business thrive. But it doesn’t stop there. The best brands don’t rely on one campaign to communicate their values. They live them every day, at every touchpoint.

Kids without shoes

Give shoes away

We make

shoes

How the TOMS butterfly diagram might look

333%increase in page views

27.3%year-on-year growth increase in users

47%

47%conversion rate

£9.6mincrease in sales

28%increase in orders

of members engaged

60%£200mdeposits received

in 8 weeks

75%increase in customer

retention

A nimble approach, a head for strategy and an eye for compelling creative has seen us forge a close partnership with HSBC. Our understanding of HSBC’s brand purpose means we work with teams across the business to communicate their desire to grow companies, boost economies and ultimately help people and businesses realise their ambitions and objectives.

Find out more at: bornandraised.com/ work/hsbc

Fulfilling ambitions

Services provided: Strategy, branding, design, digital, video, animation and copywriting.

conversion rate 47%

Results

As the UK’s leading supplier of Personal Protective Equipment, Arco’s purpose is simple and poignant – keep people safe at work. Over the years, we’ve worked closely and collaboratively with Arco to demonstrate that purpose to employees and customers. The results have lead to healthy people and business.

Our ‘It’s not just safety gear’ campaign elevated the brand from just another supplier to one with genuine values and purpose. Suddenly, safety gear looked a lot more appealing.

Find out more at: bornandraised.com/work/arco

Services provided: Strategy, design, copywriting, digital and animation.

increase in awareness45%

increase in profit£3.8m

IT'S NOT JUST SAFETY GEAR

Results

Relaxing into the future

Services provided: Design, animation, copywriting, video, digital and email.

MoneySuperMarket want to bring calm to people’s finances. A big ask when most of us find managing bills and comparing prices stressful. Add a heap of meerkats and opera singers to the mix and getting the attention of tech-savvy twenty-somethings is more difficult than explaining Bitcoin to a grandparent.

We work with MoneySuperMarket on app retention campaigns and monthly emails to bring calm and peace of mind to customers so they can spend their time focusing on what really matters.

Find out more at: bornandraised.com/work/moneysupermarket

Results

increase in users 47%

reduction in the cost per install

16%

Capturing an attitude

Changemakers goes a long way to describe the attitude of the University of Sheffield. Its purpose is to give students the platform, the knowledge and the tools to change their worlds.

We work with departments across the university to demonstrate how the brand’s values and purpose mirror students’ beliefs – making it the ideal place for people looking to set tomorrow’s agenda.

Find out more at: bornandraised.com/work/sheffield-university

Services provided: Strategy, branding, design, copywriting, photography, video and digital.

A SITE FOR MORE EYES

Services provided: Strategy, design, web build, animation and email. There are no prizes for

guessing Keep Britain Tidy’s purpose. While the brand didn’t need our help to define what they stand for, they needed a website that took their behaviour change messaging to more people and businesses. We work with the charity to make sure every online visitor knows what Keep Britain Tidy stands for and how they can get involved.

Find out more at: bornandraised.com/work/keep-britain-tidy

volunteers signed up to the Great British Spring Clean

535K

increase in page views

333%

Results

If you’re looking for an agency to solve your challenges and deliver effective, impactful work, you’re in luck. Challenging Thinking gets results and it’s delivered every day, in everything we do, on purpose.

As a strategic creative agency, we believe in connecting brands with like-minded people through purpose. Over the years, this attitude has helped B2B and B2C brands of all shapes and sizes create engaging brands and campaigns.

Ready to act with purpose, and attract the best people and consumers to your brand? We’d love to help.

E. andrew.loades@bornandraised.com T. 0114 399 3990

bornandraised.com/purpose

YOUR PARTNER WITH PURPOSE

We’re proud to be recognised as one of the best. Here are some of the awards we’ve picked up recently.

WINNERINTEGRATED AGENCY(UP TO 29 EMPLOYEES)

North Born + Raised, The Grain Warehouse, Victoria Quays, Sheffield, S2 5SY.

South 2 Angel Square, Islington, London, EC1V 1NY.

bornandraised.com

If you want to know more about the transformative effect of purpose, there’s plenty more on our website. Or, if you’re already on board, send an email or give us a call using the details below.

0114 399 3990

andrew.loades@bornandraised.combornandraised.com/purpose

PURPOSE CHANGES EVERYTHING